The other move I'm anxious to see is Christian Bryant replacing Orhian Johnson at safety. Like the move to Miller, I think it's bound to happen...just a matter of when. The sooner the better. Corey Brown is a special athlete, but I still think he's at best the third best safety on the team after Barnett and Bryant.

"I believe it is the nature of the human species to reject what is true but unpleasant and to embrace what is obviously false but comforting." H.L. Mencken

danwismar wrote:The other move I'm anxious to see is Christian Bryant replacing Orhian Johnson at safety. Like the move to Miller, I think it's bound to happen...just a matter of when. The sooner the better. Corey Brown is a special athlete, but I still think he's at best the third best safety on the team after Barnett and Bryant.

How much of the Miller not starting before was deference to upper classman? How much was Miller's hamstring tweak? How much was Miller not being ready to run the offense (and how much did that change in the last four days)?

I actually want to know the answer to those questions if anyone has an opinion or facts.

I know it was likely a combination but if deference overrides any of the others then I'm pissed and hold the same low opinion of Fickell as I did an hour ago.

Far be it from me to try to elevate your opinion of Fickell...but I'll take a crack at your questions...

Don't think the hamstring tweak mattered much, if at all...

Beat writers I respect who watched fall practices were of the opinion that Bauserman did look good running the offense...to the point that there was very little question after August practices that he would be the best bet to start at the beginning of the season. His passing was seemingly improved over what they had seen previously (admittedly surprising many of them).

Meanwhile, Braxton was flashing the elusiveness that comes naturally to him, but he wasn't setting the world on fire with decision-making or with consistency as a passer. In other words, he was playing like a freshman.

No doubt JoeB had the best grasp of the playbook...to the extent that makes a difference, starting him made some sense. I don't think anyone anticipated his seeming inability to see the field...read defenses...make on-the-fly adjustments...stuff you don't find out about when you're running practices against your own team's defense. He had had minimal playing time in games, obviously, in his first three seasons.

I'd say a general deference to upperclassmen was a minimal factor. Even in the first game, we saw plenty of freshmen blowing by more experienced upperclassmen at other positions....Bennett, Devin Smith, Ryan Shazier, Evan Spencer, Joel Hale, etc.

If Fickell hadn't thought playing JoeB gave him the best chance to win, he wouldn't have played him. And the same can be said of today's announcement.

"I believe it is the nature of the human species to reject what is true but unpleasant and to embrace what is obviously false but comforting." H.L. Mencken

Thanks Dan. Admittedly, the Miller-Bauserman issue takes a back seat to seeing Fickell seemingly paralyzed with fear/indecision Saturday night. I don't read many newspapers so I honestly wonder if he was asked about what looked like lack of decisiveness and leadership on the sideline. Not calling any of his timeouts whie he was sweating profusely on the sideline scares me.

I agree with your analysis that the deck was stacked and he was put into a shitty situation but calm under fire and leadership should not be traits that need to be developed from the ground up for a coach at Ohio State.

I can't get past the feeling Fickell will be an interim nightmare when we look back on the program in ten years. At that time we may also be pining for the then Coach Fickell. I don't begrudge him the opportunity to develop into a top flight head coach at all. I just don't want OSU to be his on the job training.

So please keep in context my disgust is not so much with him but more so with the situation. A situation he admittedly did not ask for or deserve.

Making things worse is they're now turning to a true freshman who doesn't have th benefit of a legit or gifted offensive mind to help him work his through the inevitable difficulties any freshman would face. It's disconcerting to say the least.

danwismar wrote:Far be it from me to try to elevate your opinion of Fickell...but I'll take a crack at your questions...

Don't think the hamstring tweak mattered much, if at all...

Beat writers I respect who watched fall practices were of the opinion that Bauserman did look good running the offense...to the point that there was very little question after August practices that he would be the best bet to start at the beginning of the season. His passing was seemingly improved over what they had seen previously (admittedly surprising many of them).

Meanwhile, Braxton was flashing the elusiveness that comes naturally to him, but he wasn't setting the world on fire with decision-making or with consistency as a passer. In other words, he was playing like a freshman.

No doubt JoeB had the best grasp of the playbook...to the extent that makes a difference, starting him made some sense. I don't think anyone anticipated his seeming inability to see the field...read defenses...make on-the-fly adjustments...stuff you don't find out about when you're running practices against your own team's defense. He had had minimal playing time in games, obviously, in his first three seasons.

I'd say a general deference to upperclassmen was a minimal factor. Even in the first game, we saw plenty of freshmen blowing by more experienced upperclassmen at other positions....Bennett, Devin Smith, Ryan Shazier, Evan Spencer, Joel Hale, etc.

If Fickell hadn't thought playing JoeB gave him the best chance to win, he wouldn't have played him. And the same can be said of today's announcement.

peeker643 wrote:I can't get past the feeling Fickell will be an interim nightmare when we look back on the program in ten years.

I don't think that will happen....as long as it's a one-year interim.

If they get a well-qualified head coach in here in 2012, this year can be a blip on the long-term outlook. The program remains stacked with good talent, and the recruiting fallout could well be a one-year deal. Most all of the best 2013 recruits in-state are high on OSU.

Fickell was asked, and explained as best he could, what he was thinking about timeouts at the end of the game...he said he was trying to save two of them to go on offense, since they needed two scores. Not sure he was terribly persuasive with the media on that score.

"I believe it is the nature of the human species to reject what is true but unpleasant and to embrace what is obviously false but comforting." H.L. Mencken

peeker643 wrote:Interesting discussion on the way home after hearing Fickell on the radio:

Is this now Miller's gig completely?

If he's a disaster can you and do you go back to Bauserman and risk losing whatever support the fan base has left for Fickell?

If Bauserman was an option does Graham move up to backup behind Miller?

Does Guiton have any role at the spot or is he potentially a guy that could replace a Miller package if Miller fails miserably?

No turning back from Miller at this point...at least that's my guess. You sink or swim with the guy now. If you're experimenting with Graham or Guiton at this point in the season with your supposed stud freshman on the bench, it's really all over. If you go back to Bauserman as your best option...well...I don't even want to think about that.

"I believe it is the nature of the human species to reject what is true but unpleasant and to embrace what is obviously false but comforting." H.L. Mencken

Let's say Miller is fine in his new role as QB but gets dinged or hurt.

Is Graham the back-up QB? Because I don't think you can go back to Bauserman even then. There's just no point.

danwismar wrote:

peeker643 wrote:Interesting discussion on the way home after hearing Fickell on the radio:

Is this now Miller's gig completely?

If he's a disaster can you and do you go back to Bauserman and risk losing whatever support the fan base has left for Fickell?

If Bauserman was an option does Graham move up to backup behind Miller?

Does Guiton have any role at the spot or is he potentially a guy that could replace a Miller package if Miller fails miserably?

No turning back from Miller at this point...at least that's my guess. You sink or swim with the guy now. If you're experimenting with Graham or Guiton at this point in the season with your supposed stud freshman on the bench, it's really all over. If you go back to Bauserman as your best option...well...I don't even want to think about that.